This arc takes place a week after our hero's demise...let me know what you think of the format...it's not the new writing style, I just thought it would be a good intro to what Light's life is like now without him...just for this arc, then I go back to 3rd person omniscient.

---------Chapter 1

—Lucky Charm Grove for the Abandoned and the Ferals ——January 25, 2011——Light’s Residence—

An alarm clock beside the bed rang…the time was showing 6:00. I blinked my eyes a couple of times before reaching over and turning it off. After flipping back over onto my back, I rubbed my eyes with the base of my paws and sighed. I let my arms drop to my side and stared up at the ceiling. My collar tag in the shape of crosshairs hung loosely down the side of my neck from my camouflaged-patterned collar. The blanket was twisted around me like I’d been tossing and turning in my sleep. My name is Light Greyfield, and this is my story.

The day was supposed to start like any other, I get up with Keith…we do our yoga exercises and we eat before brushing our teeth and starting our patrols…simple, right? I looked beside me to find no one. Keith was gone…forever. My eyes started to water as I longed for his company…we were more than just a master and his pet, more than what the residents of Babylon Garden’s called a Parent and Son or Daughter…we were brothers in arms…equals on the battlefield…but no longer. I choked back a sob before throwing the covers off of me and slowly getting out of bed. My paws rubbed away the moisture gathering at the base of my eyes as I stood and walked over to my yoga mat in front of the television. I was amused at the living conditions Martin provided to the residents here at the Grove, as Keith and I had ended up calling it; its real name was a bit longer than that. Keith, was it really a week ago you’d left me…?I wasn’t really sure; it seemed so much longer than that. I sighed yet again before I began the yoga exercises. They helped calm me down a little bit, but it just wasn’t the same without him.

The yoga exercises were soon finished and I did my usual workout routine before heading for the cafeteria. It was the only place we could eat…Martin had said he didn’t want pets to eat the wrong quantities or types of foods…more safety precautions. The incident had caused a drastic restructuring of the security of the Grove, the team felt they were responsible…and I couldn’t help but blame them, myself…but I understood. Ultimately, it was Keith that had made the decision…they were just following orders. I was mad at the only human I cared for, and it was tearing me up inside. I was so lost in thought I accidentally bumped into Arietta.

“Hey, watch where you’re…oh, sorry, Arie.” I looked up and recognized her not a moment too late. When we were dating for a few weeks, I’d been granted the honor…or privilege I suppose, of calling her by a nickname…I didn’t quite understand it, but apparently humans can call others by nicknames if they know each other…or something like that. Our relationship hadn’t worked out within the security team and we decided to just be friends, but the nickname had become a habit and stuck.

“Good morning, Light…” she replied with a sad smile. Everything seemed to remind me of Keith…of losing him, it hit the entire team hard…harder than anything had probably hit them before…but no one felt it worse than I did. “…I’d like to stay and help you feel better, Light, but I’m on duty…I’m sorry…” the female Czech wolf continued. She was rubbing the back of her neck in embarrassment. I wondered if she still had feelings for me.

“Yeah…no, I get it…” I said with a soft yet sincere and understanding voice. She gave me a hug out of nowhere, I instinctively wrapped my arms around her and unconsciously inhaled the scent of her fur by her neck, wondering if I could have a second chance with her since we weren’t working together anymore…that stress wouldn’t have been there. I was grateful for the physical contact, a hug was just what I needed to start the morning. The pain slowly chipped away, one small action at a time...I didn't know how long it would take to recover from the loss…I just knew it would never be enough.

I suddenly remembered the eyes of that dog, from a long time ago when we interviewed the team members, her lavender, mesmerizing eyes…the one I’d tried to find time and time again after that first meeting with her, but failed. Where was she hiding…had she been adopted? I asked myself before quickly breaking off the hug with Arietta. As LCGSD personnel, I should have been keeping better tabs on who entered and left the grounds, but there were so many, I couldn’t keep track of them all. If I had done a better job of that Keith would probably still be here…dang it, even my reasoning had become a Keithtastrophy. Tears began to fill my eyes again and before I knew it, Arie noticed I was lightly sobbing. She placed a paw on my shoulder, trying to comfort me. I reached over placed my paw over hers. “I’m okay…” I said to her softly with a smile, my voice cracking slightly. She nodded before leaving to continue her rounds. I sighed as I wiped the tears out of my eyes again. …just another day at the Grove, I thought to myself as I continued to the cafeteria for breakfast.

----------

The story continues...just like I said it would. ;3A.N.: Thanks to Tha Housedog for allowing the use of his characters I asked him to create for the interview arc...and Elias, too.

I entered the dining hall. It wasn’t too crowded, due to it being so early…most pets slept in…they didn’t have anything to do except have fun doing any number of the activities the Grove provided us. I only continued getting up early out of habit. I spotted my good friend, Elias already eating his breakfast. He was a mix, half Boxer, and usually wore a green handkerchief around his neck along with the special collars the residents of the Grove were required to wear. He’d been brought in as an adoptee when his owners…or parents…were killed in a car crash. I grabbed a tray and walked over to the counter, as I was given my assigned meal. “Hey Light,” the cafeteria worker called me by name with a smile. The guy was good. He was able to remember everyone and was friendly enough. I had my suspicions he helped prepare the food as well, he seemed to give off that scent. “Good morning.” I replied, trying to smile. I had a feeling it wasn’t turning out right.

He set a bowl of cheerios with milk and blueberries sprinkled on top on my tray along with my meal. I fought the urge to toss the bowl to the ground and gritted my teeth. “…I didn’t forget,” the cafeteria worker replied.

I was sure he was just trying to cheer me up, but I couldn’t help but get upset. He set a mug of green tea on the tray as I nearly lost it. I turned away before he could see my eyes start to water. The tray was shaking slightly in my paws as I made my way over to the boxer mix and sat beside him. I finally got a chance to look at my meal. Eggs and potatoes…This’ll work… I thought to myself. …it beats hunting in the wild. I’d almost forgotten I was a feral at one point, I’d been living with him for so long.

I nearly jumped when Elias placed his paw on my shoulder. He must have thought I was distracted, because he mentioned it as he spoke to me. “You okay, Light…?” he asked as he looked around the room.

Yeah, except my best friend and the best human partner a wolf could ask for is dead… I considered answering coldly. Instead I sighed. “Yeah…I’m fine El…thanks.” I started on my breakfast, and he took his paw away.

“I’m here for you if you need anything,” he added as he went back to eating his breakfast.

I considered telling the Boxer-mix how I felt, but I’m sure it wouldn’t have come out right…I did however remember I hadn’t asked him if he’d seen that magnificent creature with the lavender eyes. “…actually there is something?” I started as I set the end of my fork in the potatoes.

Elias turned his head toward me with a bit of a surprised expression on his face. I didn’t think it was that surprising, but I guess I didn’t really ask for help from anyone often. “…well, it’s about this one dog…” I began as I unconsciously rubbed the back of my neck.

My friend seemed to know what I was saying right away. “Ah, a lady dog right?” he asked with a nudge and a wink. “…why not, Light…? You aren’t getting any younger y’know,” he added, trying to encourage me, before he took a sip from his water glass.

“Yeah, well…I don’t even know her name and I met her here a while ago, just before the new shelter opened…I haven’t seen her since so I assumed she’d been adopted but I don’t remember her being adopted. I’ve never felt about anyone the same as I feel about her and I don’t even know her name…” before I knew it I was telling Elias one of my biggest secrets. I guess I had the sudden urge to tell someone…anyone. Not even Keith had known about her. My eyes started to water again as the memory of him continued to loom over me.

Jason and Jayden two of the LCGSD team members had entered the dining hall; they must have been about to start their shift since they were in uniform. The two German, former K-9 Unit police officers gathered their breakfasts before taking the seats across from me and Elias. “Morgen, Light.” Jayden said to me with his usual enthusiastic smile while his human counterpart, Jason, started eating his breakfast. He sometimes spoke German, and I’d picked up on some of the more commonly used words.

“Morning,” I managed to reply, looking up briefly with a smile before going back to poking my potatoes with a fork. “How’s everyone doing?” I asked without looking up from my potatoes. I’d lost my appetite.

Jayden turned his head downward to take a bite of his food, before looking at me, "Well, We're doing fine. We were just training a bit, and decided we were both hungry." The German Shepherd continued eating from his plate.

His human partner, Jason looked at me, "You're not hungry? It's like you never eat anymore..."

I clenched my fists slightly. Elias placed a paw on my shoulder and I relaxed a bit. "I'm sorry...I just have a lot on my mind...forgive me for not wanting to eat because I lost...I..." I said to them as tears began forming in my eyes. I quickly quelled the sadness by sheer will, pushing it down inside me. I noticed my vision clearing slightly. I took a large helping of the potatoes on my fork and stuffed them into my muzzle, chewing them quickly and swallowing. Elias went back to eating as I looked apologetically toward the German Shepherd.

Jayden looked up from his plate at me once again. It seemed like he understood what I was saying. His expression as he looked at his partner gave me the feeling he would feel the same way if he’d lost Jason…but I knew better…they didn’t have the same thing Keith…they didn’t have the same thing we had. The German Shepherd shook his head, I got the feeling that he was trying not to think about that scenario.

Jason decided to say something to Jayden in the same German accent as his canine partner. "Well, we all should eat. Our rounds are gonna start soon."

I got up from the table, receiving looks of indifference from the German-born LCGSD Human/Canine unit. “Sorry Jayden…sir…” I said to the German Shepherd and his partner. They nodded and saluted me. I smiled ever so slightly as I gave a half-hearted salute in return. “…I don’t have much of an appetite right now…I’ll see you around,” I added, before patting Elias on the shoulder. “I’ll see you later, El.” I’d left the tray and my food on the table, but I didn’t care. I needed to find something to take my mind off of the Team…every time I thought of it I thought of him.

-----

A.N.: Thanks to Private Elliot for allowing the use of his characters I asked him to create for the interview arc and for some of the dialogue for Jason and Jayden. :3

I know. DX I'm sorry. I'll try to do one with Light and someone else. That drawing has actually been on my hard-drive for months. I just felt like I needed an image for the deviantart submittals and I decided to use it for the preview images for the chapters I have on there. I just had a few finishing touches to add and it's not really cleaned up very well, but meh. -_-

I walked out of the cafeteria and made my way outside. I just felt like going for a walk. The snow was falling gently against my fur as I walked through the thin layer of snow on the ground. I shivered a bit as my feet pressed against it, the coldness of it against my footpad feeling surprisingly refreshing. I don’t know what brought me to the library of the shelter…perhaps it was fate, perhaps I was just bored. Not having worked for the team, leaving me with not much else to do. My patrol routes had never been in this area of the compound so I wasn’t sure what to expect as I entered.

There were only a few large bookshelves located in the library, but there was no shortage of kindles. …of course Mr. Foster would take the more efficient route and store the books electronically on the servers, available for download by the residents…it’s just like him. I thought to myself as I turned around to exit the large room. I stopped mid-step. Somehow, I’d almost missed her. I looked over my shoulder.

She was sitting there at a table reading an actual book, not one of the kindles. Her taupe fur glowed in the sun coming in through the window behind her as she casually and gently licked her thumb and turned the page. A pair of reading glasses enhancing her violet eyes. She looked up from the book and glanced over at me. In her startled state the reading glasses fell off of her muzzle and into the open book as she turned a deep red before she took off, leaving the book on the table and heading toward the doorway on the opposite side of the room I’d entered from.

“Wait!” I shouted as I ran after her, approaching the doorway a few seconds after she’d left. She was surprisingly quick for a dog her size. I started gaining on her as I chased her on the open ground of the outdoors of the shelter, I was wondering why she started running…I just wanted to talk to her.

I was a few yards behind her when Martin approached me head on with my current heading. He was carrying a manilla envelope in his hands. I wasn’t about to lose her again…I was about to catch up when Martin shouted to me. “Light I have something for you!” he said with his usual grin that seemed so smug and yet so friendly. I ran past him as I chased after the mysterious female dog she was within reaching distance of me and we were nearing the residential building…finally I’d get a chance to figure out where she’d been hiding all this time. What Mr. Foster said next stopped me cold. “…it’s from Keith!” he added as I was running past him. My focus was completely lost as I stumbled and fell into the snow sliding to a stop on my front side as I watched with regret…her…escaping me again, as she entered into the residential building. I got up quickly and was about to pursue her but what Mr. Foster had said left me conflicted.

Something for me…from Keith? I shook my head in disbelief as I clenched my fists and growled slightly. I turned in a huff and stomped back towards the master of the Lucky Charm Grove.

He seemed to understand I was unhappy because he was smiling and he leaned down and scratched me on my special spot.

I closed my eyes and started smiling before I pushed his hand away. “You’d better have a good reason for interrupting…” I stopped. I wasn’t sure what he was interrupting. I pointed behind me at the residential building. “I hope you can tell me who that was…because if not.” I shook a fist at him…knowing he’d take it as a mere joke…I did it anyway.

Martin chuckled and smiled as he held up the envelope in front of me. I snatch it from his hand and opened it while looking at him with a frown. “Her name is Emily, Light.” I stopped opening the envelope half-way, instead my paw moved to my face in a facepawlm. …of course. Why didn’t I think to ask him earlier? The truth was, I was so busy with the team I hadn’t really been able to spend much free time considering her until recently…since I was no longer on the team. Emilly… I thought to myself as I started smiling without even thinking about Mr. Foster being there. I quickly shook my head and stopped staring at the shelter’s owner. “Thanks, Martin.” I replied as I clutched the envelope in my fist.

“I hope you don’t mind, Light…I opened it. We had to make sure it wasn’t dangerous…standard procedure.” He said, with a slightly guilty voice.

“No…no…it’s fine,” I replied. I was happy to finally receive something of Keith’s. Everything happened so quickly after the incident…I wasn’t even able to return to our house to pick up my things. I was thankful they allowed me to keep the collar tag Keith had given me when we first moved into Babylon Gardens. I’d transferred it to the new shelter-issued collar I was forced to wear as a resident. “Why am I just getting this now?” I asked with a slight growl.

“It was instructed in the Lieutenant’s will to wait until the week after his death…” Mr. Foster answered, “…it’s just a flash drive…the files are encrypted and there’s no password provided.” He stood back up as I nodded in understanding. “Sorry I can’t be of more help,” the man added as he patted me on the head.

“Thanks…Martin.” I felt like my privacy was violated a bit. …he checked the drive’s contents?! I didn’t say anything but I felt it was going a little too far. I couldn’t really complain, being a mere resident now, so I just tried my best to smile. “I really appreciate it…do you mind if I skip lunch…I’d like to check it out, anyway.” I try to walk away back toward the residential building and my room.

“Light.” Mr. Foster said, stopping me from continuing. I turned to face him. “…you need to eat…it’s not healthy to keep skipping meals.” I was about to protest but he held a hand up, causing me to listen. “…that’s an order.”

My stomach grumbled as I turned around. “…” After receiving the envelope and apparently the flash drive, I’d suddenly felt a lot better and quite hungry.

Martin chuckled as he approached me and placed a hand on my head, petting me between my ears. “I’ll have someone bring you something to your room…how does that sound?”

I moved my head into his hand as he was petting me. “…okay, Martin.” I replied with a smile as I hugged him. He crouched down to embrace me back. “Thanks again.” I said to him before I turned and started to jog toward the residential building entering through the doors and making my way to my room. I was feeling a lot better now that I knew who the mysterious girl was. Emily, I repeated in my mind as I entered my room and closed the door behind me.

----------

The name of the mysterious love interest of our hero is revealed. What else will come of this fated meeting? Stay tuned to find out.

A.N. Sorry about yesterday's post being today...I was preoccupied with other things. Expect today's post to be later...um...today. ;3

I entered my room and locked the door, immediately going for my computer as I started it up and impatiently tapped my fingers against the desk. Picking up the envelope I finished opening it and tipped it, holding my paw out to catch the drive. I held it between my thumb and forefinger. It was a military-grade IronKey™ 4GB flash drive. IronKey?! I shook my head in disbelief. Whatever was on the drive must have been critically private and important. If Mr. Foster was telling the truth about not knowing the password, no one would have been able to access the files on it, even if they’d tried their hardest to crack it.

The computer finished booting up and I placed the drive on the desk I was sitting at before leaning back in my chair and rubbing the back of my neck in confusion. “Argh!” I shouted before placing my elbows on the desk and holding my head in my paws. Why? Why do you taunt me, Keith? Tears threatened to form in my eyes again…just when I thought I was close to getting something from him I’d come up short, again. “Why…Keith?” I whispered as I put a paw on the bridge of my nose and wiped the tears from my eyes. “No…” I said as I slammed a fist on the desk, “he’s not like that…he must have trusted me to figure it out somehow if he gave this to me,” I added, thinking out loud.

I slammed the drive into the USB port on the computer and a few seconds later the computer read the disc and a warning prompt came up.

The files on this drive may not be copied. Attempting to do so will result in the destruction of the files and drive. After three (3) unsuccessful password entries, the drive will lock and may only be accessed through a fingerprint and DNA identification test performed in person at the IronKey™ production facilities. Attempting to open the physical drive-stick, itself, will result in its destruction. IronKey™ guarantees the security of these files. Continue? Y/N

I read the words carefully. I usually skipped EULA crap, but this was critically important. Keith wouldn’t have entrusted me with something like this if it wasn’t. I pressed my finger on the Y key and the Password Screen popped up. I stared at the blinking cursor on the line. Three attempts, that’s cake, right? I hung my head in defeat as I held it tightly in my paws. “D--- it, Keith.” I said quietly before I heard a soft knock at the door. I looked over at it, before looking at my computer and getting up from the chair. “Coming!” I replied as I walked over to the door and opened it. There was no one there, but a breakfast-type meal was sitting outside of it. I bent down to pick up the tray and I brought it inside my room before shutting and locking the door again.

I set the tray on the desk beside the computer and scarfed the entire meal down, hungrily. I wondered who set the tray outside my room door, the room service was convenient but I didn’t even get to thank the person that dropped it off. The cursor on the password screen continued to taunt me. I sighed, thinking that my name or his name would be too easy and I had limited chances…I had to make them count. I got out a piece of paper and went to work.

---

Three and a half hours later and the wastebasket beside my desk was overflowing with crumpled up sheets of paper. I rubbed my eyes with my paws and gave an exasperated sigh. I looked at the time on the bottom right of my desktop. 12:00 PM I was feeling hungry. I heard a knock at the door, the same as before and I reached across my chest and rubbed my shoulder as I listened carefully and heard footpaws scampering away. A resident? I thought as I got up to answer the door. I peered outside and looked left and right searching for the hospitable resident before looking down and finding another tray of food outside my door. This time a healthy looking sandwich...a club sandwich complete with bacon. “Mmm…” I said as I licked my chops. I picked up the tray and left the one from breakfast outside my door.

I wanted to lie in wait to see if they’d come back, but I needed to figure out the password, too. The importance of the entrusted item Keith had given to me won out as I sat at the computer, thinking of any and all possibilities and coming up empty…it didn’t help that my mind’s focus was divided. “Emily,” I caught myself thinking out loud. I’d had enough of trying to figure everything out. “Grrrargh!” I growled as I tore off my collar and threw it against the door in frustration. The heavy solid metal crosshair tag slammed against the door with a loud, sharp thump. I didn’t expect the sound that followed.

Upon the sound of the collar striking against door, whoever was on the other side of it gave a yip of surprise, “Eep!”

My ears perked up and I jumped up from my seat at the computer and ran to the door.

----------

copper Wrote:

Wow, you're quick with the updates lately, Lightwolf!

And a nice one this is! We have Emily, a posthumous message from Keith, and Light's turmoil subsiding slightly.

I can't wait to find out what happens next!

Yeah, I've actually had much of this arc written ahead of time. I'll probably be having a bit of a break between chapters after these next few. -_-'

I opened the door quickly. I’d finally found the culprit, but it wasn’t the person…or rather the dog I was expecting. It felt like my heart had leapt into my throat as I saw a very startled, stunned, and stunning female dog. Her soft winter coat accentuated her face and healthy looking figure. Not too thin, not to husky, and the most beautifully slightly curled tail and violet eyes. An open book hung from her Shelter-issued collar; a tag, apparently a testament to her love of reading. I hadn’t thought to look at her in the library even though our first meeting she was holding a book.

Reacting quickly I grasped her wrist in the prolonged moment she was fazed, thanks to me surprising her at the doorway. Upon my paw around her wrist she tried making a break for it, struggling a little. “Mrf, let me go…” she said softly, trying to pull away. I wasn’t about to let her escape a third time.

“Emily!” I shouted before looking down both ends of the corridor. “Emily…” I said quietly after realizing I’d startled her. She stopped struggling and looked at me with a little fear and surprise. My predatory instincts had nearly gotten the better of me. I don’t think she knew that I found out her name. “Wait…” I replied, as I loosened my grip on her arm. “Why did you run?” I asked her in a calm, but demanding voice.

She started to tear up just as someone was getting off the elevator half way down the hallway. I looked at her before looking down the hallway, seeing the doors to the elevator opening. Shoot! I said as I mentally facepawlmed. If someone saw me holding a female outside my room and she was crying…well it wouldn’t have taken someone versed in domestic culture to figure out how they would react so I did the only sensible and stupid thing I could think of and pulled her inside my room. Her lavender eyes grew wide with surprise as she flew forward into my living quarters being guided by my paw and yelped. I shut the door quickly once she was inside.

She leaned against the wall, apparently frozen in fear from the sudden turn of events. The object on the ground that had started quietly beeping was the only thing that gained our current focus as we both looked down at the collar. I hung my head intentionally to bring my paw up to the bridge of my muzzle and chuckled in amusement. In my stupidity not only had I thrown myself into an even direr predicament, but security had been alerted by the removal of my collar and would soon be at my doorstep. I’d been so frustrated with the flash drive, I’d completely forgotten one of the features of the Grove-issued collars.

I picked up the collar and was about to put it back on when a hard knock sounded at the door right beside Emily and myself. “Light, it is Battista and it is Callisto,” the human of the Italian-born HC unit said loudly enough to be clearly heard through the door in his Italian-Roman accent. “You removed your collar…is everything alright? We’re coming in.” The door began to open. I closed my eyes, hoping for a miracle that would save me from this imminent fate…

I felt Emily grab the collar from my paw causing me to open my eyes to see what was happening. She held it dangling in her paw before standing on her tiptoes and reaching up to wrap her paws around my neck, just as the door was opening. “Do you mind?” she said in her surprisingly innocent and soft voice, as she looked over her shoulder at the Italian and the large Italian dog.

Callisto blushed a bit and turned around while Battista laughed. “Oh ho…Light, I didn’t know you had a girlfriend.”

I was blushing even more than Callisto as I looked down at the female dog hugging me…and apparently saving me in the only way she knew how.

The Italian man was smiling and winked at Light. He looked at the female dog hugging him. “The collars are not permitted to be removed, dear.”

“Right…sorry.” Emily replied as she put the collar back around my neck, stroking my neck with her fingers. She seemed to be pulling off the act surprisingly well.

“We’ll leave you two alone,” he added as he started to shut the door to my room.

“Wait, it’s not…” I tried saying while he shut the door. I was cut off by the sound of it latching as he started walking back down the hallway. “…what it…looks…like,” I finished, speaking to no one. I suddenly blushed as I realized what had happened.

Emily brought her paws away from my collar as she fell to the ground on her knees, shaking. She giggled nervously, stammering as she spoke. “Th-that was ex-exciting.” She looked up at me as I looked back at her in disbelief.

“That was an act?!” I asked in shock as I held a paw out to help her up. “…you had me completely fooled.”

Emily blushed deeply as she looked up at me and I held out a paw to her. She shook her head. “Not exactly…” she replied as she looked away from me. It seemed she was trying to avoid eye contact. She looked at my paw and grasped it with hers, pulling herself up to her foot-paws. She looked away from me and hugged herself in awkwardness after she was standing.

“What do you mean?” I asked her while rubbing the back of my neck and looking away from her, feeling she was uncomfortable with me looking at her. I wasn’t sure whether I should tell her how I felt or not. A long moment of awkward silence slowly passed.

She looked up at me and opened her mouth to speak at the same moment I looked down at her. Simultaneously, we blurted out “I love you.”

I blinked a couple of times…speechless. She didn’t say ‘I think I love you’…but she said ‘I love you’ in a certainty that rivaled my own.

Emily seemed a bit surprised by my response since her large lavender eyes went wide before she froze up again and fainted. I was still so stunned by what had just happened I couldn’t even react before she wound up on the carpet of the room.

----------

((Sorry this got posted so late in the day... -_-' I hope I can write another chapter by tomorrow.))

_________________My charactersEverybody has a story to tell. What's yours?

Fri Mar 04, 2011 3:53 am

valerio

Game Master

Joined: Mon May 25, 2009 6:53 amPosts: 18175Location: Italy

Re: Houspets: PoP - A Lost Hope (PG-13)

DAAAAWWW!!! Give wuffie some mushy stuff!

_________________

Fri Mar 04, 2011 11:28 am

Coatl_Ruu

Joined: Sun Jan 02, 2011 9:56 pmPosts: 1451Location: [REDACTED]

Re: Houspets: PoP - A Lost Hope (PG-13)

Huh. You know, this is pretty well-written. When I get a chance, I'll probably go back through and read the whole thing. Let's see... how many pages!? Holy carp. Well, now I know what I'm doing this weekend. Awesome work.

Huh. You know, this is pretty well-written. When I get a chance, I'll probably go back through and read the whole thing. Let's see... how many pages!? Holy carp. Well, now I know what I'm doing this weekend. Awesome work.

Hey, I actually kept caught up with a fanfic! I didn't know that was possible!

It was an act...and at the same time, not an act.

_________________If you're awesome, you're here.

Wed Mar 09, 2011 11:55 pm

Coatl_Ruu

Joined: Sun Jan 02, 2011 9:56 pmPosts: 1451Location: [REDACTED]

Re: Houspets: PoP - A Lost Hope (PG-13)

Alright, I just finished my massive archive binge, and I gotta say... wow. You've done a good job with this. Keith's death didn't come as a surprise (coming in late spoiled a few things... ) but that whole last scene was... touching? Depressing? Either way, it made me sad. But, you know, in a good way.

Alright, I just finished my massive archive binge, and I gotta say... wow. You've done a good job with this. Keith's death didn't come as a surprise (coming in late spoiled a few things... ) but that whole last scene was... touching? Depressing? Either way, it made me sad. But, you know, in a good way.

Ahem. Anywho, I read the latest chapter and I am no longer sad.

valerio Wrote:

Give wuffie some mushy stuff!

My thoughts exactly. He deserves it.

Thanks, Coatl_Ruu. XD I do it for the fans, and I'm glad to have another one. ...now I just need to find my Light/Keith Fan Banner and repost it on imageshack. X3Also, I need to get to work on the next chapter. O_o

I’d kind of wished I’d had a second bed in my room since I didn’t have anything else to put her on. I placed my paws under her, one under her knees and the other gripping her side. She seemed very light as I picked her up off the ground. Walking toward my bed where I aimed to place her. In her sleep she reached up and gripped my chest fur, causing me to stop suddenly. I blushed before recomposing myself and continuing toward the bed, supporting her back on my knee setting her gently on it and covering her with the covers. I couldn’t tell if she was faking or not since she gripped the covers with her paws and seemed to sniff them eagerly. I shook my head and went back to the computer trying to work. She must have been watching me because when I looked over my shoulder at Emily she seemed to have her head under the covers. I turned back around and stared at the computer screen before I started tapping my finger on the desk, a bit annoyed. “Emily!” I shouted and turned toward the bed before catching myself, taking in a deep breath.

“Eep!” she exclaimed and jumped, from under the covers. She slowly peaked her eyes out from under the edge of the covers she held up in front of her face.

I started blushing and looked away from her, turning my head as I stared at the ground beneath my desk. “S-sorry, I’m just…very busy and you’re distracting me.” I said as I closed my eyes and rubbed the bridge of my muzzle with the thumb and forefinger of my right paw.

She slowly slid out of the bed and shuffled slowly toward the door to my room, her ears and tail hanging low. I chuckled softly and smiled a bit. “Wait, Emily…” I said as I stood from my chair and walking toward the door. I placed a paw on it as she reached for the handle. “Wait…” I said softly before looking down at her. She looked up at me with her eyes and my heart started racing again. I smiled nervously. “…y-you don’t have to leave, just…” I took my paw off the door as she suddenly smiled, her tail started wagging. I walked back to the computer and sat down. “…just don’t distract me, okay?”

“Oh…okay,” she replied softly as her ears raised a bit and she walked over, sitting on a chair beside me. It was better than her laying in the bed behind me; I could actually see her out of the corner of my eye. She placed her paws on the desk in front of her and sat there, somewhat obediently, as I went back to work on the password.

After a while of just sitting there, I held my head in my paws and sighed.

Emily’s ears perked up a bit, biting her lower lip as she looked away from me. I could tell she was worried about me. Her question pretty much confirmed it. “Is there anything I can do to help, L-Light?” she asked softly as she folded her hands together on the desk’s surface.

I was pretty frustrated at this point and I wasn’t even thinking when I replied. “Not unless you can bring back Keith…he’s the only one that would know this password!” I was shouting with a bit of a growl…everything seemed to remind me of him…but this time I was the one that reminded myself.

Emily’s ears immediately lowered and she pulled her paws back, wrapping them around herself with a soft whimper. Her lower lip was quivering.

Way to go, Jerk, I thought to myself. “I’m sorry, Emily…it’s…it’s been a rough week,” I replied with a weak smile.

She seemed to calm down a bit as I smiled. She nodded, sniffling a bit. “What…” she hesitated for a few seconds before noticing it was okay for her to ask me something. “…what are you working on?” she was asking in a shy voice, hesitant, as if she wasn’t sure it was okay to ask that, considering my current mood.

If it was anyone else I wouldn’t have answered…I probably would have kicked them out of my room, but for some reason I felt comfortable with her…only her. I found it difficult to get along with anyone but…him. “I’m trying to figure out a password to access some files,” I answered her calmly.

“Oh…” she replied, looking back down and to the side, moving

I looked at Emily, wondering what she was thinking. I started to play with my metal crosshair tag, staring at the computer screen. It was a strange calm, as if everything was going to be okay, despite my attitude and mood earlier, I felt better with the young female beside me. She was noticeably younger than me of course I'd seen a lot during my lifetime. I sighed and she looked at me, I looked back at her and noticed she wasn't looking at me but at my tag. I smiled as I took the tag off my collar ring to show it to her. "It's cool, right? My fr-..." I stopped suddenly and my ears lowered.

She reached over and placed a paw on mine as it was resting on the desk. "I know," she said quietly.

A slight chill went up my spine, not a chill so much as a warm feeling...comforting. Of course she knew. Everyone at the shelter had seen how close I was to Keith. For some reason I wasn't hurting as much when thinking about him at that moment. I looked down at my collar tag and turned it slightly, the light coming in through the slit in the curtain glinted off of it missing a strip of black. I blinked and turned my head to the side, a slightly confused look coming over my face.

Emily must have noticed because she also tilted her head but in the opposite direction. "L-Light...is there something wrong," she asked in a soft voice, a hint of worry included.

"Shh," I replied holding up a paw to her as I moved the collar tag back and forth in the light, indeed there was a strip of black that wasn't reflecting the light.

She sat quietly as she looked at the collar tag, also noticing something strange about it. "There's something there," she said, wagging her tail with curiosity.

“Seems like it," I replied, scratching the back of my neck with my claws before taking a clawed finger and scratching at the black strip. Beneath it were indentations as I raked my claw across it. I pulled my finger away looked at it. A black resin was underneath it; I looked back at the tag and saw that I'd dug out some of it to reveal partial letters. "Huh...that's interesting I said with a smile."

Emily's tail was wagging faster now, a look of confusion and curiosity spreading across her face. "What is it?" she asked in an excited voice, much louder than the way she usually spoke. Her eyes widened with surprise.

I quickly scratched away the rest of the resin and held it up against the light. Looking closely I made out a seemingly random number of letters and numbers, apart from the pet identification number on the tag. I smiled and chuckled, shaking my head. “…just like him.”

The small female dog beside me tilted her head and made a ‘Mrph~?’ sound as if confused.

“Nothing…” I replied with a smile as I rubbed the debris away from the letters and numbers etched into the back of my collar tag. I typed the letters and numbers in carefully and pressed the enter key. Both my tail and Emily’s were wagging in excitement and anticipation. What could be on the drive? repeated over and over again in my head as a confirmation box popped up, reminding me with the warning about the IronKey™ procedures and policies. Apparently the password had worked since it was asking if I wanted to proceed. I typed the “Y” key and the drive opened rather anticlimactically…it merely opened the root folder on the drive as if it were a regular flash drive.

Emily looked at the screen and me in amazement. Either she didn’t know much about computers or she thought I knew an impressive amount of things about them.

I patted her on the shoulder as I smiled at her, thrilled I was finally getting what I needed. I attached the collar tag back onto my collar as I browsed the folders. One was named Videos, one Audio and the other was named Documents. “Yeah…that makes sense…” I said quietly to myself.

Emily sat there feeling I was ignoring her. I might have been, my mind was focused on one thing at the time, the video’s folder. She got up off the chair beside me and walked toward the door quietly. I noticed she wasn’t there and looked back over to the door as she opened it. “Emily?” I asked her before she suddenly turned around to look at me.

“I don’t want to…bother you, L-Light,” she said quietly as she looked at the ground, holding the door open with one of her paws as the other stroked the back of the paw holding open the door, as if she was nervous.

I had to agree with her. I wasn’t sure what was on the drive…nor did I know whether it would be too sensitive for her. Also…I wasn’t about to risk being seen crying in front of her, either. I smiled at her and nodded. I picked up my sandwich off the tray as I turned to her. “Will you come back and see me for dinner?” I asked her with a nervous chuckle.

She blushed and giggled. “Okay,” she replied as she smiled shyly. “I’ll see you later, Light,” she added as she left the room, the door closing behind her.

I took a bite of my sandwich before chewing it and swallowing. I licked my chops and quickly finished it off before resting back against my chair and looking at the folders in front of me. I opened the folder containing documents and started reading.

----------

This was a long time for this update...I'll try to be better about it from now on. -_-' Anyway, please enjoy.

Thanks for the quick response replies. X3 ...I'm not sure how much longer I'll be sticking with this narrative style. I gave it a shot, but it progresses storyline-wise rather slowly compared to third person omniscient.

I am Not sure what kept me from reading this Fic Sooner, What a great Story - and I particularly enjoyed the setting and your attention to detail, your word choice and vocabulary in this piece is excellent.I love the natural flow of your dialogue [---totally jealous---] -Keith is such a cool character - Great read I can't wait to find out what happens next!

I am Not sure what kept me from reading this Fic Sooner, What a great Story - and I particularly enjoyed the setting and your attention to detail, your word choice and vocabulary in this piece is excellent.I love the natural flow of your dialogue [---totally jealous---] -Keith is such a cool character - Great read I can't wait to find out what happens next!

Dang! DX Someone read what I typed regarding an update...I guess I don't have much of a choice now. -_-' My brother's graduation and preparation for it have taken up more time than I thought for this weekend...fairly certain I will not be able to update it this weekend. DX

Wow...I can't believe it's been two whole months since I've updated this. O_O I apologize to my fans for the long wait. Hopefully this makes up for it.

---------Chapter 7

I looked over the list of documents and videos. I clicked the file labeled View Me First. It was a standard video document. As soon as it opened I smiled and a tear formed in my eye. It was Keith sitting in a chair speaking into what appeared to be a webcam. He had a slightly more youthful appearance than he did at the end of his career as head of the LCGSD team. I hadn’t realized the job had aged him as much as it did.

My partner was looking down and he sighed before looking into the camera. I shivered a bit, he never looked at me like he was looking at the camera. I knew his eyes were deadly weapons with the training he’d received and I whined a bit, longing for him again.

I listened intently as the Keith in the video started to speak. “Light…if you are…watching this, I’ve most likely lost my life protecting you or doing something foolish…I’m so sorry.”

I started tearing up, I wanted so much to answer, to reply saying I was sorry, but the video didn’t give me a chance, nor could my master hear me. I shook the thoughts out of my head and did the only thing I could do, listen.

“There was so much I wanted to tell you…but I was afraid of how you’d feel about me…having kept things like this from you…”

I blinked in surprise, not because Keith was getting to the point…that was like him, but because he had kept something from me…and by the sounds of it, it was something terrible.

“…but what’s done is done and now that you’re safe at the shelter I suppose it’s best to tell you some things about myself…and you.”

I tilted my head slightly to the side and looked at the computer screen with a confused expression covering my face…at least I thought it was a look of confusion, I had so many emotions suddenly emerging I couldn’t have begun to guess what the expression on my face could have been showing. What do you mean, Keith? What do you know about me that I don’t…? My thoughts focused back to a week ago, Temno… I growled angrily and slammed my fists on the table, baring my teeth. The short pause Keith took in the video had ended and he continued.

“The day I found you in the woods that day was because I was doing recon on a suspected location of a certain organization’s facility…an organization that we had recently been proving to pose a threat to the United States…”

I blinked in surprise. I was surprised because I had never thought to ask him what he was doing in the forest that day.

“…I was returning from a scouting patrol when I found you…and that’s not all. I found it odd that you were alone, I know you mentioned trying to think of a name, but from what I’d found out from some of my contacts you seemed too old to be trying to come up with a name. I found it odd and dug a little deeper. One of the military’s moles had written in a report that a rejected test subject was to be expelled from one of the programs regarding animals. When I was bandaging you up I found a chip of some sort…not something a normal feral would have…I didn’t report my findings because I knew what it meant…”

I understood what he was trying to say…I still couldn’t believe it. Was it true? My eyes grew wide in shock, all of a sudden a memory surfaced…

---

A figure in a long coat walking away, memories and thoughts fuzzy…quickly fading…a few moments later a young wolf pup approaching, asking a question about my name, saying he’s choosing one, a pain in my shoulder, an ear-splitting noise, the pup scampering away, fear evident in his eyes. My eyes turning to see someone, their face obscured…they look away from me and run off suddenly…I look down, paws covered in crimson liquid, my vision fades as I feel like I’m falling before suddenly going black.

---

I suddenly came to, my eyes opening and my head resting on its side in front of the keyboard. I blinked, picking my head up, my tear filled eyes and groan as my head hurts. I rubbed the bridge of my nose, closing my eyes in a frown and sighing. “What the heck…?” I said quietly to myself as I shook my head. I looked toward the computer monitor and saw that the video had ended. It seemed to be as long as what I had seen. I looked around and chuckled quietly. What the heck is wrong with me? I asked myself quietly as I thought about what I’d just heard. My ears lowered and I looked around again as if afraid or paranoid. Tears continued to blur my vision a bit. If what Keith was saying and my memories were serving me correctly…although unreliably, I was that test subject... but if I was…why can’t I remember? I asked myself as I rubbed my temples in frustration.

A hundred more questions filled my head combined with a dozen emotions…I wasn’t sure if it was because I had Keith speaking to me again or the sudden revelation or the fact that Keith had kept this from me all this time. I figured if he’d told his superiors they would not have let me live…of course he was also taking a huge risk in keeping me by his side. I wasn’t even sure what type of animal testing they were doing, but it seemed like Keith knew more than he was letting on. On the one paw I felt betrayed that the human I considered my best friend had been lying to me all this time but on the other paw I was glad he kept it to himself to protect me from the military we were enlisted in at the time. I buried my face in my paws and groaned. My head was hurting from the sudden memory of that moment, wondering why the way I remembered it several years ago was not the same as it was now.

A knock at the door caused me to flinch in surprise before I instinctively closed the laptop. “Yeah?” I called out quickly toward the door.

“Hey. It’s me…Elias. You okay? You didn’t come to lunch.”

“Uh…I wasn’t in the mood…” I answered as I checked the time on alarm clock beside my bed. 1300 hours.

He knocked on the door again, louder this time. “C’mon Light…when are you not in the mood for lunch?” he asked through the door, clearly not buying it.

“Crap,” I said quietly before getting up from the desk and walking toward the door. I exhaled quickly and put on a smile before opening the door, meeting the Boxer-mix face to face.

“So…” Elias said as he leaned against the doorframe and looked at the back of his claws. “…what’s up with you?” he continued, casually.

I sighed, looking down and my ears relaxed before leaning out from the doorway past my friend and glancing left and right quickly, checking to make sure no one was there to overhear me. I pulled my head back in and looked at him. “Okay…” I said as I held up a paw in front of him, leaning in closer. “…I-I think I’ve fallen in love.”

The Boxer-mix blinked a bit and then smiled, shook his head and chuckled. “You sly dog,” he replied as he punched me playfully in the arm.

I smiled and wagged my tail a bit while I rubbed my arm where he’d punched me. “Heh…yeah, she brought me lunch earlier.” I tried my best to put on a serious face as I looked at him again. “Just don’t…don’t tell anyone…please.”

Without speaking he crossed his heart and held a paw up, before making a zipping motion across his muzzle.

“Great…I’m busy right now. I’ll text you when I’m free,” I reply, trying my best to maintain the façade. He nodded and I breathed an internal sigh of relief as I nodded back before shutting the door and locking it. I waited until I heard Elias walk away before I sprinted back over to the computer and nearly knocked the chair onto its side from sitting in it too quickly. I righted myself and flipped up the screen of the laptop and opened the next video on the list, labeled 01-Episode.

The video had cut to a different take with Keith looking at the screen below the camera for a few seconds before looking into the lens of it. I waited anxiously for him to continue the explanation…to answer my unanswered questions.

He smiled as he looked into the camera, an expression of his I know I’d miss more than I had already. “By now you’ve probably had some sort of episode from the information in the previous video…it’s uh…how do I explain?” He rubbed his hand back and forth across his forehead as he looked down and to the side. He turned his eyes back toward the camera lens. “…my guess is that they used something to erase your memory or something…I’m uh…I’m sure you’ve experienced episodes where you’ve blacked out for some short amounts of time…”

My eyes darted back and forth, trying to remember…some moments had come up now that I thought about it…maybe it was Keith’s casual and comforting demeanor that hadn’t caused me to worry about them. …although he did usually say not to worry about it when I asked him…I trusted him…maybe too much.

“…our contact from within the organization managed to escape with some documents… That contact, is the one that trained me in my non-marksmanship skills.”

I shook my head and rubbed the back of my neck. He’d never mentioned any of this before, I was still skeptical, my ears and tail drooped. I thought you trusted me, Keith.

“During the mole’s escape he ran into a bit of a rough patch, the military wouldn’t provide extraction citing his mission wasn’t complete and that sending backup in would be too risky. This was while we were still in the military, do you remember?”

He chuckled and covered his face with his hand leaning to one side in the chair as he supported himself with an elbow, probably realizing it was ridiculous that he was asking a question to a video recording. I did remember, though…I remembered that day because it was the first time after he had rescued me from the woods that he insisted I not follow him.

---

“Why not?!” I asked walking up to his side as he packed his backpack with the things he would need for the mission. “…why can’t I go with you?”

Keith sighed. “Light, I don’t want you going because…I care about you.” He replied as he placed several MREs into his pack. I tilted my head and raised an eyebrow.

The hesitation gave him away. Despite me not have knowing him for very long, I felt there was something he was hiding from me.

He must have felt my glare as I crossed my arms because he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “You’re still too green anyway,” he added, causing me to lower my ears.

It was true I hadn’t finished my basic training by that time. I sighed and sat on the bed. “I understand it’s dangerous…I’ll wait,” I added as I forced a tail wag and looked up at him. I moved my head into his hand as he pet me and I lay back on the bed staring up at the ceiling and waiting for him to finish packing. He left with a salute which I’d returned and smiled as he did. The other military canines I spent time with and continuing my training without Keith was troublesome. I wasn’t able to focus and I just barely scraped past some of the lessons while he was gone. It was over a week before I saw him again.

---

I hadn’t seen the contact he’d been sent out to extract from the enemy territory’s location that was classified to everyone except Keith and a couple higher-ups. I’d assumed he’d been successful because he was smiling, although strangely after that. My thoughts had wandered and I focused my attention back to the video.

“…anyway, you wouldn’t believe what I had to do to get them to agree to let me get my friend out of there. I finally convinced them it would be prudent to get him out with as much information as he had, rather than lose everything with him being found out. I volunteered for the mission and I’m sorry I had to leave you in the middle of your training…” he took his face away from his hand and shifted in the seat. “…but you’ll never believe what the mole had found out…he’d proved my theory that you were that abandoned test subject and I was suddenly worried for your safety of course, I didn’t want to lose you so I had my friend lie to the military for me.”

I suddenly got chills up my spine. He was telling me the same thing as the last video but I was starting to get annoyed at not getting the answers I needed. I also wondered why this mole would have lied for Keith, even if he was just his mentor why would he lie to the military for his sake?

“He’d found a lot of useful information the military could use confirming their suspicions of the alleged activity of the complex, along with giving them enough to go on regarding potential danger posed to the United States, but still fearing retaliation from Russia…

I blinked in surprise. “Russia?!” I shouted out in surprise before catching myself. Suddenly the pieces started to fall into place. The complex must have been located in Russia…Temno had a Russian knife… I started to growl at the memory of that day a week ago. I shook my head and tried to pay attention to the video.

“…we didn’t strike. Soon after he’d completed his mission my mentor and the military’s mole was discovered to have been engaging in inappropriate behavior within the military and was dishonorably discharged. I know I told you otherwise but that’s the real reason why we left as well. I didn’t feel comfortable staying there for fear of them finding out about you.”

I started to tear up, another lie exposed…although not as jarring as the others, the test of loyalty was being tried. I wiped away the tears and listened, hoping to find out more about these blackouts I’d been having.

“Please see the word document file below this video for the next explanation…a video with audio would be a bad idea for it.”

I tilted my head with a confused look on my face as the video ended there. I closed it and opened the word doc Keith had mentioned. My eyes grew wide with surprise as I read it. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” I said quietly to myself.

----------

End Transmission.Authors note: At one point I had a troll face here for the hyper edge-of-your-seat cliffhanger. But since the next chapter is posted already, no need for it. :/

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